Sunday, 7 August 2016

An impromptu Tokyo Shawl

You may be familiar with the Tokyo Shawl. A lovely pattern by
Marianne Isager using the Isager yarn, of course. Only available in kit
form, in designated colours, at some knitting shows or perhaps online
in some places. Also, confusingly available in different kits (as in
different numbers of colours) depending on what country you buy it from.
It seemed expensive (I have a natural aversion to kits) and none of the
colour combinations were right for me.

I
spend a good amount of time looking at pictures of the shawl, and
similar type patterns, and just decided to go for it. I zoomed in on
images, I counted rows, I read comments and blogs for hints about how to
make it work. And I did. I made mine narrower, longer, and with an
i-cord edge. I also used way more colours. And I really like it.

The
yarns I used were all Isager – the Spinni wool, and the alpaca lace. I
bought little bags of colours, all mixed up, and then bought some of
the alpaca to have a bright (the pink) and a light (the cream).

I
think it will go with everything, because it already contains almost
every colour. It’s also blanket-like, which is my preferred scarf/shawl
size. Longer than I am tall, and oh so light and lofty, it just floats
around my shoulders.